Unknown assailants opened fire on a car carrying the Chechen rebel chief-of-staff Aslan Maskhadov in what was clearly an attempt to kill him, Interfax news agency said.

The agency, quoting rebel sources, said that Mr Maskhadov escaped unhurt from the attack, which occurred outside a village in the south-east of the breakaway Russian region. One of his bodyguards was wounded. It was not clear from the report if the attack was carried out by Russian troops, pro-Moscow Chechens or by dissident units among the rebels themselves. Reuter - Moscow